Men distinguished sexual partnerships that were just for sex from those that were considered to be ‘real relationships’, while women represented most of their relationships, even those which included significant financial support, as being based on love. Besides being motivated by love, concurrent sexual partnerships were described as motivated by a lack of sexual satisfaction, a desire for emotional support and/or as a means to exact revenge against a cheating partner. Social and structural factors were also found to play a role in creating an enabling environment for high-risk sexual partnerships. These factors included social pressure and norms; a lack of social trust; poverty and a desire for material goods; and geographical separation of partners.